Seriously considering selling my brews

[The Green Man]

One thing I must nail down is reducing the yeast sediment in the bottles. I think I can get away with a little. At the moment there isn't a lot but if I can reduce it further all the better.
Been reading a bit about fermenting under pressure and then using a bottling gun. I will probably need this. I suppose the idea is that if you use the natural co2 produc3d at the tail end of the fermentation (1 points worth or so) you avoid priming sugar and this ought to reduce the yeast in the bottle. This is an area which may need some outlay...

 

[GFHomebrew]

One thing I must nail down is reducing the yeast sediment in the bottles. I think I can get away with a little. At the moment there isn't a lot but if I can reduce it further all the better.
Been reading a bit about fermenting under pressure and then using a bottling gun. I will probably need this. I suppose the idea is that if you use the natural co2 produc3d at the tail end of the fermentation (1 points worth or so) you avoid priming sugar and this ought to reduce the yeast in the bottle. This is an area which may need some outlay...

Or a canning machine and or force carbonate prior to packaging its tricky to control foaming though.

Harrybrew 69 did an open source canning machine build on his channel he uses priming sugar to carbonate his cans.

 

[The Green Man]

Or a canning machine and or force carbonate prior to packaging its tricky to control foaming though.

Harrybrew 69 did an open source canning machine build on his channel he uses priming sugar to carbonate his cans.

Wow. Good on him.
I was thinking about the Blichmann bottling gun 2. Seems to be improved and prevents foaming. The only issue for me is getting a ferm chamber than can handle the pressure. More research to do on this one.

 

[GFHomebrew]

Wow. Good on him.
I was thinking about the Blichmann bottling gun 2. Seems to be improved and prevents foaming. The only issue for me is getting a ferm chamber than can handle the pressure. More research to do on this one.

I'm using a kegmenter ATM but the fermentasaurs from kegking or the little alrounders from kegking are lovely little pressure fermenters at a cheep affordable price.

 

[Daniel Parshley]

Plus another for Barbi! There's a small local the does the same...they have a sexy label for the brewery with a lot of write on space for the name and stats.

Your brews...keep your taste out of what "The Market" wants.

The other business advice I'd give us to write a business plan...it sounds like you have the germ of one already....that goes for any business...and have someone look it over with a critical eye....finally...along with Brian...check in with @Steve SPF too...he's a publican of sorts.

Never so much truth been told. Yes, do a business plan, and I have none many that told the unwanted truth. But, I finally did one that worked and it was sweet. Still, I roll my eyes when friends say "You should open a brewery". So many failed ones around here and crunching the numbers explains why.

 

[The Green Man]

Never so much truth been told. Yes, do a business plan, and I have none many that told the unwanted truth. But, I finally did one that worked and it was sweet. Still, I roll my eyes when friends say "You should open a brewery". So many failed ones around here and crunching the numbers explains why.

Cheers Daniel. The numbers will be well and truly crunched believe me. I am not fully committed to it yet. It is a "do if possible" idea. I don't want bankruptcy or early death through overwork, lol. If I can manage to set-up through the red tape with as little investment as possible that could work. I am not looking to set the world alight, just sell very, very small batches of beer as a side-gig. It may well not be a goer, but I will know exactly why it isn't or I will give it a good go.

 

[The Green Man]

I'm using a kegmenter ATM but the fermentasaurs from kegking or the little alrounders from kegking are lovely little pressure fermenters at a cheep affordable price.

They sound great. I'll have to look into those. I reckon this is one area I need to master before I set-up shop.

 

[Dirty Dingo Brewing CO.]

One thing I must nail down is reducing the yeast sediment in the bottles. I think I can get away with a little. At the moment there isn't a lot but if I can reduce it further all the better.
Been reading a bit about fermenting under pressure and then using a bottling gun. I will probably need this. I suppose the idea is that if you use the natural co2 produc3d at the tail end of the fermentation (1 points worth or so) you avoid priming sugar and this ought to reduce the yeast in the bottle. This is an area which may need some outlay...

Look man, I've brewed commercially and have people offer to buy my homebrews

I would say to you, do what you're comfortable with. Don't worry about anything else. At the end of the day it's a business and the only one who knows how to run your business is you.

Do what you're good at, trust your own intuition, and trust you own instincts... there's a reason why you want to do this in the first place

Lastly, you don't NEED everyone to love your brew, or your brand, or your character. You only need a very small percentage of the population to believe in you and like what you do. So stay true to yourself and keep going from there.

I started on brewersfriend as well, and ended up a commercial brewer... anything is possible!!!!!

 

[The Green Man]

Look man, I've brewed commercially and have people offer to buy my homebrews

I would say to you, do what you're comfortable with. Don't worry about anything else. At the end of the day it's a business and the only one who knows how to run your business is you.

Do what you're good at, trust your own intuition, and trust you own instincts... there's a reason why you want to do this in the first place

Lastly, you don't NEED everyone to love your brew, or your brand, or your character. You only need a very small percentage of the population to believe in you and like what you do. So stay true to yourself and keep going from there.

I started on brewersfriend as well, and ended up a commercial brewer... anything is possible!!!!!

Thanks mate. It's good to hear you have been there and done it.
Will be doing what feels right and what makes sense to me (after a lot of analysis and thought).

 

[The Green Man]

So after a lot of research I have decided not to go ahead right now. I'll just refine my process, make a few improvements with an eye to commercially selling my brews as a product. I'll get set up as far as I can and then wait for better financial climate.
Margins are too tight at the levels I will be selling and I don't have spare capital to get me over humps with cash flow. Was always a 'Do if possible' idea rather than a career-change.
Thanks for all input an advice guys. As always, very much appreciated.

 

[GFHomebrew]

It's a great time to get into the Craft Brew Industry in Aus though I did watch one fella who went all in after HBing for 15 years go bust in a year!

I tried his Pale Ale it was a solid alrounder.
But I think he chose a risky location to set up a brew pub.
Marketing is another big one getting your name out there in the forefront of people's minds when their thinking beer.

A really successful local brewery have these bumper stickers you see them stuck on the rear windows of alot of cars driving around.
It's almost become a kinda status symbol displaying your local drinking habits via a bumper Sicker lol.
Great marketing.
I'd throw a sticker in with every case of beer!

 

[Steve SPF]

Sorry to be late to this conversation, only got back from a trip to Thailand yesterday so still catching up.

I've done a version of this over the last year or three. There are some hoops to jump through but, honestly, nothing too onerous. I asked a few people first and the consensus seemed to be that it was too complex, my idea was shite, my setup was too small, I was too dumb or I at least needed the help of an expert - and everyone on Facebook seems to be an expert.

I'm a fairly open book when it comes to work and business so am generally pleased to help and answer whatever questions I can so feel free to message me with anything.

Generally speaking, the key to selling beer in this country is an AWRS number from HMRC. They will come and visit the 'brewery' and will expect full compliance. My 'brewery' is a 16x10 shed at the back of my house. The brewery tour takes around 30 seconds - no need to book but they still wanted the plans with storage areas marked out.

Once registered you need to submit monthly duty returns and pay over whatever is due but it's a simple process once it's set up.

Labels need to be compliant but we can over think these things, it's just another small problem and the solutions are simple enough.

I guess the question is do I make any money at it? The answer is yes, a little bit, but for me the brewing and beer selling is part of a bigger whole and the bigger whole is working quite well.

https://shedbeer.co.uk/

 

[The Green Man]

Sorry to be late to this conversation, only got back from a trip to Thailand yesterday so still catching up.

I've done a version of this over the last year or three. There are some hoops to jump through but, honestly, nothing too onerous. I asked a few people first and the consensus seemed to be that it was too complex, my idea was shite, my setup was too small, I was too dumb or I at least needed the help of an expert - and everyone on Facebook seems to be an expert.

I'm a fairly open book when it comes to work and business so am generally pleased to help and answer whatever questions I can so feel free to message me with anything.

Generally speaking, the key to selling beer in this country is an AWRS number from HMRC. They will come and visit the 'brewery' and will expect full compliance. My 'brewery' is a 16x10 shed at the back of my house. The brewery tour takes around 30 seconds - no need to book but they still wanted the plans with storage areas marked out.

Once registered you need to submit monthly duty returns and pay over whatever is due but it's a simple process once it's set up.

Labels need to be compliant but we can over think these things, it's just another small problem and the solutions are simple enough.

I guess the question is do I make any money at it? The answer is yes, a little bit, but for me the brewing and beer selling is part of a bigger whole and the bigger whole is working quite well.

https://shedbeer.co.uk/

Great to see that you are doing it. The hoops didn't seem in any way insurmountable and I know I have customers already which is great...but...I would need a bit of spare cash to get over a few cash flow humps.
My personal situation means that all cash is accounted for (like most of us I'm sure). The idea is just on the back-burner waiting for the right time to be lit again.
The take home message is that it is all very do-able on the very small scale that we are talking about. Out of interest, what size batches are you brewing? Bottles and casks? I am guessing that is only bottles as that is what I was looking at.

 

[Steve SPF]

Cask, keg, bag in box and bottle for me.

I find bottles to be the biggest PITA but far and away the best margin because those get retailed. Casks go into the trade so margins are ok but not great. Kegs are in their early days but have very solid margins. I rent out mobile bar units, if my beer goes into those bars then I'm closer to retail prices and the margins there are excellent.

I brew on a 100lt setup and yield around 60lt. Most brew days are double days now, we will brew again on Monday and that will be two English Pales. We have a festival coming up and I need a few beers for that so I will brew every Monday now, I will brew Fridays as well when we need to but that will be a couple more fermenters as well so won't be any time soon.

I don't think it's possible to make a living at this scale, but as part of a bigger whole it really works.

 

[GFHomebrew]

Cask, keg, bag in box and bottle for me.

I find bottles to be the biggest PITA but far and away the best margin because those get retailed. Casks go into the trade so margins are ok but not great. Kegs are in their early days but have very solid margins. I rent out mobile bar units, if my beer goes into those bars then I'm closer to retail prices and the margins there are excellent.

I brew on a 100lt setup and yield around 60lt. Most brew days are double days now, we will brew again on Monday and that will be two English Pales. We have a festival coming up and I need a few beers for that so I will brew every Monday now, I will brew Fridays as well when we need to but that will be a couple more fermenters as well so won't be any time soon.

I don't think it's possible to make a living at this scale, but as part of a bigger whole it really works.

I suppose it would be a great situation if you can brew some for them and keep a keg for your own personal consumption at the customer's expense perfect scenario in my books.
But that won't pay the bills I suppose but a happy medium at least your playing the market and any big openings your a chance at being in the right place at the right time or talking to those in the know of any commercial ventures.

 

[Steve SPF]

All of my own consumption is tax deductible in a sense because there's only tax to pay on profits; the more I drink the less tax there is to pay The margins on what I do sell are healthy, even into the trade.

As I say, I'm not looking to pay the bills from brewing. It's a really interesting branding exercise at this stage and I'm doing something very specific, my emphasis is localness (I know that's not a word!) and moving towards sustainability as much as possible. I think the comments around business planning earlier in the thread were very pertinent.

I've seen a lot of small brewers trying to get into an already crowded market and failing. To me, there's no sense in me trying to compete with already established brewers. I don't bring anything different - my beers are competent but nothing special - so you end up trying to compete on price and that becomes a race to the bottom; pointless for me.

There will be opportunities but scaling up and commercial brewing are not what I see coming. If demand outstrips supply as I think it will then it will be contract brewing and I'm already having those conversations. Contract brewing fixes the price and gives me control over the margins at the front end which makes all the numbers more predictable.

For me, there's more to the beer business than making beer. Others will be chewing at a different format.

 

[Ward Chillington]

All of my own consumption is tax deductible in a sense because there's only tax to pay on profits; the more I drink the less tax there is to pay

Another pragmatic Brewer! Great idea on the local angle Steve....that has a very large appeal to a specific demographic that crosses economic lines from the poor college kid to the well off who value the community and want to help out the start ups and little guys....it's also is prevalent in the foodie circles... Go "underdog"!

 

[Steve SPF]

Another pragmatic Brewer! Great idea on the local angle Steve....that has a very large appeal to a specific demographic that crosses economic lines from the poor college kid to the well off who value the community and want to help out the start ups and little guys....it's also is prevalent in the foodie circles... Go "underdog"!

Exactly that; I think the 'foodie' comparison is a good one. I'm that way inclined myself, refusing to buy tomatoes out of season and all that stuff and being a fan of local craft bakeries etc. I call myself a 'beer nerd' and am very interested in provenance and tradition.

The folk that want to buy a slab of lager and smash through it watching the football are not my audience any more than the folk who jizz over 9% imported barrel aged sours (I have a bottle of that here and it's free to anyone who appreciates those things). My audience is beer nerds, home brewers and people who appreciate authenticity and artisan products.

Probably straying off topic here but it's pertinent I think. There's more to the beer business than making beer to my mind, and the more clearly you see where you fit in then the better chance you have of making it stick. I think

 

[GFHomebrew]

Exactly that; I think the 'foodie' comparison is a good one. I'm that way inclined myself, refusing to buy tomatoes out of season and all that stuff and being a fan of local craft bakeries etc. I call myself a 'beer nerd' and am very interested in provenance and tradition.

The folk that want to buy a slab of lager and smash through it watching the football are not my audience any more than the folk who jizz over 9% imported barrel aged sours (I have a bottle of that here and it's free to anyone who appreciates those things). My audience is beer nerds, home brewers and people who appreciate authenticity and artisan products.

Probably straying off topic here but it's pertinent I think. There's more to the beer business than making beer to my mind, and the more clearly you see where you fit in then the better chance you have of making it stick. I think

Interesting you talk contract brewing I was listening to the latest Expermintal Brewing Pody talking to a bloke In LA who is cutting his way into the market via Contract Brewing.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5O...i=Qu17Mo5eSyOPGS8qo9Ap3Q&utm_source=copy-link

 

[Viejos Cañones]

Regarding fermentation under pressure I ferment in keg.
With regard to turbidity is the result of flocculation of the type of yeast, cold and time. You can add gelatin even filter it. It can use 1 or 0.5 microns and it will look like an industrial one.
If it ferments under pressure. A tap type PEGAS that are economical solve the foam very well and the loss of it.